Thank you Putnam for the advance copy of Girls Like Us in exchange for an honest review.

FBI agent, Nell, returns to her hometown to bury her father, a homicide detective. She is soon roped into helping in the investigation that her father was working on before he died. Two girls have been found brutally murdered and dismembered. Nell may find out more about her father than she bargained for in her search for a killer.

With less than 300 pages, this is a quick police procedural that I could not put down. It had a Long Island Serial Killer vibe to it, with the victims being sex workers with very similar stories. This gave it the true crime feel that I seem to always get sucked into.

Nell is smart and no nonsense. Just like the book. There’s a no nonsense approach to the writing in this one. I liked it. It gave way to the police investigation feel of it. The facts. Not much else. But done in a way that kept me interested, not bored.

I did notice a few plot holes and there were a few instances in which the story jumped without explanation. For instance, there is one scene where the electricity is out – but we are never told that it goes back on, and we find out character making a pot of coffee and watching the news. These little mishaps, however, didn’t affect my enjoyment of the story.

Overall, this is a solid, quick crime read that I would recommend to anyone who likes true crime and police procedural investigations. It is a perfect fit.

My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5



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Thank you to Algonquin and Netgalley for the digital galley of The Van Apfel Girls are Gone in exchange for an honest review.

Summer always makes me feel young again. I remember long summer days spent swimming with my cousins in flip flopped feet and bathing suits worn all day. The Van Apfel Girls are Gone took me back so vividly that I could almost feel being a kid again in the summer.

This book is beautifully written. It is witty and funny – and haunting. And it all works so perfectly.

I really enjoyed the story being told from Tikka’s young point of view. It gives the story the innocence and raw truth that it needs.

It’s so vividly told, the violence so beautifully handled, that I found myself lost when I looked up from reading. I was there. In the story.

One of my top reads this year. By far.

My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐!

Thank you, NetGalley and Amazon Publishing for the digital review copy of I’ll Never Tell in exchange for an honest review .

I’ll Never Tell has all the summer vibes that a summer camp thriller should. More of a mystery than thriller, siblings are reunited at their family- run summer camp for a reading of the will when their parents are killed in an accident. The will states that one of them is responsible for an accident involving one of the campers from years ago when they were just teens and adolescents. The siblings must decide if they think that the person presumed guilty should be an equal shareholder in the camp. 

I like how readable and quick I’ll Never Tell is. I also enjoyed the dynamics between the siblings. It is strained and a little weird. It feels real, considering their upbringing. Each character is written with their own unique personality. It is easy to keep track. That’s so helpful with a big cast of characters. 

I do wish that more information about their dad had been explored. I would have liked to know more about the strange man that raised these quirky adults.

The mystery/clue/Agatha Christie nod of the story is fun. I enjoyed meeting each character and them being forced together until the problem is solved. 

Overall, it is a quick summer vibe read that I would recommend to fans of Agatha Christie and Ruth Ware.

My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐/5

Thank you St. Martin’s Press for the advance reader’s copy of Montauk in exchange for an honest review.

Montauk surprised me. I went into it expecting a breezy, beachy, read and it turned out to be a real heart breaker. I enjoyed the real housewives vibes in the first half of the book. It was juicy, gossipy fun to read about the scandalous lives of the wealthy in the 30’s. But, my heart broke for Bea as she tried to find her way through a life that she hadn’t planned on hating. It was easy to see how she would quickly fall into the arms of another man. Thomas, her summer fling, was the polar opposite of her husband, Harry. Her new friend Dolly quickly became a favorite of mine. Strong willed, smart, and loyal – Dolly was a pioneer of her time. 

The last quarter of the book really takes a sharp turn and I was left feeling a little shell shocked. It felt like everything came to a head so abruptly. The end was certainly unexpected for me. 

Although this is not usually the type of book that I would pick up to read, I did enjoy it. 

I would recommend it to the Nicholas Sparks readers out there. This is one that they will love.

My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐/5

Hen has bipolar disorder. In the past, she has had psychotic episodes that make her cling to and obsess over the crimes that others have committed. Now, she is on meds, and has moved into a new house with her husband. When Hen and Lloyd meet their new neighbors, Hen sees something in the husband’s office that she just knows is connected to one of the crimes that she had been obsessed with! But, could this just be another one of Hen’s manic episodes?

Before She Knew Him is a twisty thriller. It was the first time that I have ever felt empathy for the antagonist in a book. The read is quick and there aren’t any slow lags. There are some parts of the story that suspend reality a bit, but it doesn’t affect the enjoyment of the story.

With so many thrillers featuring an unreliable female lead, it takes something unique for a thriller with this trope to stand out. Before She Knew Him definitely delivers.

My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Miracle Creek is one of the Top 10 Best books that I’ve ever read.
The people, the secrets, the emotions, the guilt, the trial. All of it was so well done.
At times it was gut wrenching. 
Other times it was hopeful.
It is so much more than a courtroom drama.
It is so much more than a question of: who done it?
To say it is just ONE thing that makes it so good, would be a disservice to the book. It is EVERYTHING.
Do your reading life a favor. Do yourself a favor. Read this beautiful book!

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Emma’s bunkmates go missing one night, never to return. Fifteen years later, the camp re opens and Emma returns as part of the staff. She is determined to find out what happened to her three friends all those years ago.

This one is very slow. It took me forever to get through Part 1. That was about 250 pages in, and I was still waiting for something to happen. Once I got to Part 2, the story started to pick up. But, I was still not flipping pages rapidly. To say that this is a slow burn would be a serious understatement. The real action and reveals take place around the last 30 pages of the 370 page book.

The characters were ok. None of them really stood out. Even Emma, the main character, was just ok. There wasn’t anyone who stood out or held my interest. Not even Vivian. The supposed bad girl of the story.

Because the reveal is a pretty good one, although I do not like the way it was played out, I gave the book 3 stars.

I picked this one up immediately after Final Girls because Final Girls was excellent. This one did not compare well. I’m looking forward to seeing how Lock Every Door holds up.

Meghan is sick. With no clear diagnosis, her mother is determined to uncover the cause of Meghan’s unexplained illness. Is Meghan really sick? 

Saving Meghan is a story of a mother’s obsessive love for her daughter. It’s a story about the lengths that someone will go to when they want to protect a loved one. It’s also a story that teaches us that not everything is what it seems. 

I, for one, thought that I was up to speed on Munchausen Syndrome. Turns out, there’s way more to it than meets the eye. Becky’s past creates such a conundrum when trying to figure out how sincere she is about her daughter’s illness! There were tell tale signs that screamed the answers to me. They had me right where I thought I had a handle on the truth then – Boom! I was blindsided!

The courtroom scene felt laggy and more tell than show. And, I felt that the book could have been a bit shorter. There seemed to be a bit of overlay. But it was a great read. One that I will definitely recommend.

Secret Things and Highland Flings is a fun, light read with a castle as the backdrop. The plot is interesting and the characters are all well written. In terms of romance, this one is low on the steam but high on the sweetness.

It was fun to be swept away into a castle in Scotland. The family dynamic between all the characters is entertaining. Their affection for each other came through in the writing. Tasha is definitely my favorite character. I would love to read a book with her as the lead.

It was a predictable story. I found myself skimming towards the end. But, in terms of bright, breezy reads, this one hits the mark.

Three girls are lone survivors of three unrelated massacre like attacks. They are deemed the Final Girls. One of the survivors is found dead years later. The two remaining Final Girls become friends, and soon one of them starts to question how much she really knows about her fellow Final Girl. 

The sorority house, dirty motel, and campy college kid filled cottage solidifies the slasher movie feel of this book.

The violence in the book is vivid without being grotesque. It made my heart pound without making my stomach churn. 

The characters are all flawed and dynamic and believable. Making the story interesting to follow.

The twist is a winner. I thought I knew what it was, and I was blindsided. That is always the best part of a thriller. 

Overall, it was a fun read that kept me up late and had me looking over my shoulder and out of my shower curtain! Deliciously thrilling.

My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐